State governments have a significant stake in the growth of the road sector. Over the past year, the sector experienced expeditious growth with the help of enhanced design capabilities and use of modern equipment. The industry witnessed the completion and awarding of multiple projects in various states, despite pandemic pitfalls.
Many states have shown interest in sustainable construction practices and green highways in recent years. To keep carbon emissions low in road construction and maintenance projects, research on India-specific emission factors, effective policy initiatives, and an accurate assessment of the available green technology is required. Additionally, engineers are needed to determine which of the available green technologies are sustainable, cost-effective, and best suited to a particular construction project.
Maharashtra
The Maharashtra government has made persistent efforts for the expeditious construction of expressways, link roads, ring roads and coastal roads. The state government has set up significant funds for road development. The sector’s finances are also being strengthened by the involvement of multilateral institutions and domestic sanctions. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) inaugurated seven national highway (NH) projects, valued at Rs 55.69 billion, to expedite the growth of Aurangabad, along with the road sector. The state plans to add road infrastructure worth Rs 330 billion, of which Rs 260 billion will be utilised to fund the 173 km long Pune ring road.
The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority allocated funds worth Rs 12.2 billion for various road projects in Maharashtra under the 2022-23 budget.
As of September 2022, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai has been allowed to commence partial development work on the ongoing Mumbai coastal road project while observing that sustainable development is an important ingredient in the protection of the environment.
The upcoming length of state roads in Maharashtra is approximately 6,800 km. At an estimated cost of Rs 700 billion, the Konkan Greenfield Expressway Project (state highway) is one of the most important upcoming projects. The Versova-Virar Sea Link Project and the Pune Ring Road Project are two other important state ventures that are being constructed in engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) mode at a cost of Rs 352.35 billion and Rs 238.28 billion respectively.
In 2022-23, three road projects have been completed. These are Package II of the Borgaon-Watambare four-laning road project (NH-166), the Kora Kendra flyover, and the Saoner-Dhapewada-Gondkhairi four-laning road project (NH-547E). Additionally, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has proposed the construction of the Indore Western Ring Road Project in the state.
Uttar Pradesh
The Uttar Pradesh government is making every attempt to enhance infrastructure in the state. Two expressways – the Gorakhpur Link Expressway (91 km) and the Ganga Expressway (594 km) – are currently under construction. Once completed, the state will have 1,788 km of expressways, the highest in the country. Expressways have traditionally been a top priority for the state, as evidenced by the persistent emphasis on them.
In May 2022, NHAI signed two key MoUs to improve national highway infrastructure and preserve the environment in Uttar Pradesh and other states. In the past eight years, NHAI has completed 31 projects totalling 2,100 km in length and worth Rs 1 trillion. The vast majority of these are four- or six-lane highways. Approximately 50 NHs, totalling about 2,200 km and costing Rs 730 billion, are now being implemented in the state. In the next three to four years, the authority expects to build another 1,800 km at a cost of about Rs 630 billion. In 2022-23, Uttar Pradesh completed 11 NH projects at an anticipated cost of Rs 130 billion.
Recently, the state government outsourced its first road construction project at a premium. It approved the Uttar Pradesh State Highways Authority’s plan to award the widening work of State Highway (SH) 46, linking Pukhrayan, Bindki and Ghatampur, to Prakash Asphalting & Toll Highways at a cost of Rs 11.36 billion. This is the fourth state highway to be given to private parties for construction, but rather than sharing the cost of enhancing road infrastructure under the public-private partnership model, the state government will be able to generate revenue through toll collection for the first time.
In the Uttar Pradesh budget 2022-23, a provision of Rs 6.95 billion has been proposed for the 594 km long six-lane Ganga Expressway project from Meerut to Prayagraj. The state’s public works department (PWD) inaugurated two road projects – the Gola-Shahjahanpur road stretch (SH-93) and the Lakhimpur-Dudhwa National Park two-laning road project – in July 2022.
In September 2022, the state government granted approval for two-laning 13 highway projects. These 13 projects pass through Fatehpur, Shahjahanpur, Jalaun, Ghazipur, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Bareilly, Mirzapur and Pratapgarh. Apart from these, upcoming state projects span over 2,700 km, and around 1,900 km is already under construction.
Some of the big-ticket upcoming projects are the Bijnore-Moradabad-Fatehgarh expressway project, the Upper Ganga canal expressway project, the Indo (Uttar Pradesh)-Nepal border road project and the Varanasi-Bhadohi-Machhalishahar four-laning road project (NH-18).
In an effort to rid the state of plastic waste, the Uttar Pradesh Panchayati Raj Department is creating an action plan for garbage collection from 250 sites. This garbage will then be utilised in the construction of roads.
Madhya Pradesh
The pace of road construction in the state has been progressing steadily. Against the construction target for 2022-23, major district roads (MDRs) have achieved 18.9 per cent, national highways are at 13.25 per cent, and state highways have met 6.37 per cent of the target.
The under-construction MDR projects being constructed in EPC mode span around 135.18 km and are estimated to cost around Rs 2.18 billion. There are 18 ongoing operate-maintain-transfer projects spanning 1,019.67 km and costing the concessionaires Rs 1.79 billion.
The upcoming state projects cover over 3,100 km. Some big-ticket projects being developed in EPC mode are the Sidhi-Singrauli four-laning road project (NH-39), the Dindori-Mandla two-laning road project (NH-543), and the Kurwai-Mungaoli-Chanderi two-laning road project (NH-346).
The PWD is also constantly working towards sustainable development of the road network in the state, training teams of engineers to adopt the latest technologies, improving road geometrics and safety provisions, and replacing existing level crossings by road over-bridges. NHAI has also proposed the construction of the Indore Western Ring Road Project.
Andhra Pradesh
To give a boost to road development in Andhra Pradesh, MoRTH will be spending about Rs 3 trillion on road construction in the next three years.
In a recent development, MoRTH laid the foundation stones for eight NH projects worth Rs 30 billion in Rajamahendravaram, Andhra Pradesh. Once these projects are completed, they will provide greenfield road connectivity to the Kakinada SEZ, SEZ Port, Fishing Harbour and Kakinada Anchorage port, which will facilitate the export of rice, seafood, oil meals, iron-ore, biofuels, granite, etc. through Kakinada Port.
The upcoming state projects span a little over 1,000 km. One of the major road projects, the Anantapur ring road project is being built in EPC mode at a cost of Rs 6.16 billion.
In sum
As per India Infrastructure Research, the awarded, under-construction and under-bidding length for 2022-23 (as of September 2022) is roughly 57,000 km. Some of the major under-construction projects are the Mumbai-Nagpur Super Communication Expressway Project (Samruddhi Expressway), the Greater Hyderabad Strategic Road Development Plan (SRDP) Project and the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link Project. The Bengaluru Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) Project Phase I is a big-ticket project currently under bidding, along with the Duttaluru-Kavali Two-Laning Road Project (NH-167BG). Key projects awarded recently include the Chennai Peripheral Ring Road Project and the Greenfield Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway Project.
